US Sunscreens Aren’t Safe in the EU? The Science

US Sunscreens Aren’t Safe in the EU?

There’s been a lot of fearmongering about chemical sunscreens. There were scary-sounding new stories – sunscreen absorbing into blood, killing coral reefs, zinc oxide being toxic, benzene in sunscreens… Related Post: Top 7 Sunscreen and SPF Myths I’ve covered most of these before, and they’re largely just the media taking things out of context and sensationalising them, partly for views, …

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My Top (Mostly Cheap or Free) Haircare Hacks

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I’m pretty lazy with my haircare and I’m bad at sticking to routines. But I also bleached my hair so I could play with pretty colours, which dramatically increased the effort involved to keep my hair looking decent. So in the last few years I’ve been trying out a lot of haircare hacks – these are the ones that’ve changed …

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Reacting to More Unpopular Opinions

Unpopular Beauty Opinions

Here’s part 2 of me discussing people’s unpopular opinions about skincare, and beauty in general – this time we’re talking about: 0:24 Paraben-free was pushed so products would go bad faster 3:46 Everyone gets Botox secretly and pretends it’s skincare 6:28 You can use non-essential products / people get nerdy about skincare and makeup as a way to feel less …

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SPF Boosters: Hidden chemical sunscreens in “mineral sunscreens”

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There’s a sort of industry secret with mineral sunscreens: a lot of them contain unregulated chemical sunscreens. Which isn’t always a big problem… but it also kind of is. Today we’re talking about inactive ingredients in sunscreens that aren’t really inactive. The video is here, keep scrolling for the text version…. SPF boosters It’s not that easy to make a sunscreen. It …

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Oily Skin Skincare and Makeup Tips

oily skin makeup skincare tips

My skin is oily / combo and I complain about it quite a lot, so I often get asked for my best tips for controlling the inevitable flood of oil. I also sweat easily which apparently means I’m fit, but this adds to the oil and I end up a bigger mess. I’ve spent a long time trying to get …

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The Science of Hair Products: Shampoo and Conditioner

Sulfates, fatty alcohols, silicones, preservatives… what are they doing in your shampoo and conditioner, and do you need to avoid them? Today’s post is a deep dive into some of the key ingredients in haircare products. The video version is here if you prefer that format! Note: This post is based on a video sponsored by The Ordinary, but this …

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The Science of Laser Skin Treatments and Picosure Review

laser picosure treatment

This video was sponsored by Cynosure, although this post was not. Lasers! You can use them to cut things, you can use them to point at words, and you can use them to treat about a million different skin-related things. These are just the ones I found on the AAD website: Birthmarks, melasma, hyperpigmentation, freckles, acne, rosacea, psoriasis, wrinkles, fine …

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Reacting to Your Unpopular Opinions

I asked on Instagram for all your unpopular opinions a short while back, and filmed a chatty video discussing a handful of them – check it out here!  Topics covered: 0:19 Body moisturisers are good face moisturisers 1:10 Skincare is unnecessary 2:32 Physical exfoliation is terrible for sensitive skin 5:20 Hyaluronic acid causes inflammation 8:23 Hyaluronic acid dries skin out …

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